A Timely Answer (Episode Two of 'If') *complete*
by randibaby
Summary: Lee and Amanda enjoy their honeymoon (Part 2 of If We Had never Met)
1. Just the Beginning

"If" Episode 2: A Timely Answer  
  
Disclaimer: Scarecrow and Mrs. King belong to Shoot the Moon Productions and Warner Brothers and I'm making absolutely no money for this writing! I've also borrowed ideas from the movie "Glory" (think Denzel Washinton's character) and Days of Our Lives (waaaaaaaay back in 1990's when Kayla and Steve relived historic moments through a diary they read).  
  
This is part two of "If We Had Never Met"  
  
  
  
Time: February 2002  
  
Setting: Belagio Check Out  
  
Las Vegas, Nevada  
  
  
  
  
  
"Sir, Sir?"  
  
  
  
Lee and Amanda were locked in each others embrace and kissing one another with abandon.  
  
Fortunately, the clerk was unable to get Lee's attention. :)  
  
"Sir, here's your credit card back, sir."  
  
Lee reached over to retreive his card without once looking at the clerk or seperating his lips from Amanda's.  
  
"Ahh!" Amanda said as they finally broke for air. They both had the biggest smile on their face!  
  
  
  
"Okay, my bride, we better head off to Green Valley now" Lee said as he enthusiastically scooped his arm around Amanda and gave her one more smooch for the road. They were halfway across the lobby when they heard...  
  
"Stetson, paging Mr. Stetson. Mr. Lee Stetson, please pick up a red courtesy phone..."  
  
Lee took Amanda's hand and led her to the nearby phone.  
  
"Stetson here!" Lee said with joy in his voice.  
  
"Well Lee, you sure sound happy! How are "Scarecrow and Mrs. King" these days?" Francine cattily inquired.  
  
"Oh, we're not Scarecrow and Mrs. King anymore..."  
  
"Oh, tire of her that soon Lee?", Francine enjoyed saying.  
  
"No, Francine, I married her!" Lee enjoyed even more saying."We're now Stetson and Stetson. Or as Elaine likes to say, we're like Nick and Nora Charles from the Thin Man series..."  
  
"Huh?.....oh....So Elaine knows?" Francine mumbled.  
  
"Yeah, Elaine came down for the wedding." Lee was really enjoying this!  
  
Lee heard Francine collect herself on the other end of the phone, "So that means, you're on your honey.." she couldn't choke the word out.  
  
"Yes," Lee smiled through the phone, "Amanda and I are on our honeymoon, Francine."  
  
"Oh! Well, what I have to ask you can wait. Please come to the Q when you get back..." Francine was barely audible as she disconnected.  
  
Lee chuckled as he hung up the phone.  
  
  
  
"Hey Lee", Amanda said as she grabbed her arms around him, "How did they know we were here?"  
  
"They have their ways...." Lee said with a wink as he squeezed Amanda in return.  
  
"Oh!" Amanda said. They took off to put the rest of their bags in the rental car. "Lee?"  
  
"Yes, Mrs. Stetson?"  
  
Lee loved saying that!  
  
Amanda looked up lovingly into Lee's eyes and smiled, "This is the best honeymoon I've ever had!"  
  
"And it's only just beginning!" Lee smiled in return.  
  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
Lee and Amanda were now well on their....  
  
...okay,  
  
...almost...  
  
well on their way toward Arizona.  
  
  
  
Their destination: Green Valley, to visit Lee's Uncle Col. Clayton. After Green Valley, they would drive to California and visit Dottie and Captain Kurt at their quaint bed and breakfast.  
  
  
  
Amanda was looking forward to spending intimate time with Lee and was thrilled to see this unique part of our fair country! Well,  
  
...almost......  
  
  
  
Just as they passed through yet another "one light" town and passed more miles and miles and miles and...miles of rocky earth, Amanda said, through her teeth, "Lee, I think we should turn around and go back and ask that gas station clerk where we are...this doesn't look like Flagstaff, Arizona....there are supposed to be mountains and this place is just flat, flat flat..."  
  
"Amanda, I told you, I KNOW where we are going!" Lee crisply replied to his new bride.  
  
Amanda glared at Lee and turned to look out the passenger side window. She said not another word but "humph'ed" and loudly crumpled, er, folded the map that she held in her hands.  
  
Try as she may, Amanda could not get Lee to admit ...he... was lost.  
  
Just then Lee saw the highway turn off he was looking for. "You see there Amanda? Here it is!"  
  
More significantly, Lee did not tell her that he had passed this very spot three times already in the past hour. "Alright, here we go!"Lee continued.  
  
Amanda sighed as they finally made their way in the right direction. Or was it the right direction.........?  
  
***  
  
Lee kept driving through solitary and apparently, uninhabitited land. He was glad they had filled the rental car up with gas after their lunch in Bullhead City.  
  
"Lee" Amanda broke the silence with her voice, "There's a sign up ahead."  
  
As they passed the sign Amanda shouted "Hopi Indian Reservation! You drove us to the Hopi Indian Reservation! That's not really close to Flagstaff, we are miles out of the way..."  
  
"A-man-da!" Lee said in a not so sweet tone. "I meant to come here!"  
  
Amanda was speechless. "Oh, sure, you meant to come here!" she thought. Being the wise woman that she was, she held her tongue.  
  
"Hey, there's a hogan up ahead, let's see if we can go ask for dir...I mean, see if we can find a place to get dinner..." Lee said as he parked the rental car in front of the abode.  
  
Lee opened the car door for Amanda and they both made their way and entered the small earthen shelter.  
  
"It sure is dark in here." Amanda said as their eyes adjusted to the dim light.  
  
"What the!" Lee exclaimed. "There's a bunch of Indian artifacts in here...I don't get it..."  
  
  
  
Something caught Amanda's eye. In one heap of artifacts, near the bottom, she noticed a small blue leather bound book. Embossed in the leather was the word "West". That had been her maiden name. Intrigued, Amanda slid the book out from underneath the other items without knocking anything over.  
  
  
  
"Well, why don't you yell jinga!" said a snarly voice behind them. Before Lee could respond, he was knocked out from behind.  
  
Amanda went to kick their attacker but he literally had the upper hand and knocked her out with a slap.  
  
  
  
***  
  
  
  
Lee and Amanda both 'came to' as their kidnapper, Dr. Frye, finished locking them up... in...seperate cells. Lee and Amanda stared at each other through the steel bars that seperated them. Lee laughed.  
  
"Look,whoever you are, you can't lock us up in this old Western jail, this place has been here for , what, over a hundred years! We can break out, humph," Lee said as he tried to bust his way out, "With no, humph, problem! Ugh!"  
  
  
  
"Alas my dear sir, you are the weakest link! I didn't earn a doctorate because I was stupid! No, I can't have anyone 'witness' my stealing, oh, let's make that 'borrowing' ancient Indian artifacts! Too bad I'm not a killer, that would be more merciful. No instead I'll let you starve to death. No one will ever find you here! This area is so isolated... Enjoy!" Dr. Frye said as he took off.  
  
  
  
"Uh, Lee?" Amanda knew she better not say 'I told you so".  
  
  
  
"Yes, Amanda" Lee replied with gritted teeth.  
  
  
  
"What are we going to do?"Amanda said softly as she reached her arms toward Lee, through the bars that seperated them.  
  
Lee asked, "Do you have your cell phone?"  
  
  
  
Amanda timidly answered, "Uh, no Lee, I, uh...I left it in the car..."  
  
  
  
Lee reached over through the bars to hold Amanda as best he could, "Oh, well then, I guess we'll sit down here and make our escape plan...."  
  
  
  
Lee tried for hours to break through the sandstone walls or bust through the steel bars. "You know, they really don't make things like they used to! This place is better than Fort Knox!" Lee said as sat down in exasperation.  
  
Putting his head in his hands Lee let out a deep sigh.  
  
Several minutes passed....  
  
  
  
Amanda looked around her cell. She couldn't find any elements to assist them in what was left of their escape plans. As she surveyed their situation, she noticed that blue book on the floor.  
  
It was the same one that she had held in her hands when knocked unconscious. The book was some form of journal, a log of travel. Amanda thought "there's nothing else to do" and she enjoyed history and antiques so she decided to pick up the book and began to read silently.  
  
  
  
  
  
several minutes passed...  
  
  
  
"Oh!" Amanda said, head down reading the book.  
  
  
  
Lee gave her an annoyed look but didn't say a word.  
  
  
  
several more minutes passed...  
  
  
  
"Hmmm" Amanda said while still engrossed in the book.  
  
  
  
Lee thought "I hate when people do that. It's like they're begging you to ask 'what are you reading'".  
  
  
  
"Ha, ha, ahhh!" Amanda mused. Lee couldn't take it anymore!.  
  
"Alright Amanda I give! What are you reading?" Lee demanded.  
  
  
  
"I thought you'd never ask", Amanda said with a wink and a mischevious smile.  
  
  
  
Lee smiled back and shook his head, teasingly he said, "What have I got myself into....go ahead and read the book out loud..."  
  
Amanda began, "Today is October 5th 1856....The sky is bright blue and it's a perfect day to start the trip East. Here in Flagstaff, the cattle rustle through the busy main street, toward the market. Cowhands direct them past the pedestrians on the street. I stand on the steps of my storefront and watch now, as a beautiful white woman and her two sons make their way, through the cattle, to my storefront, "West's Stagecoach and Travel"--it took so many years for me to get here.  
  
She looks weary and is wearing the traditonal black veil and dark dress for mourning. I wonder if she is the one who's husband had been killed in a land dispute recently...."  
  
****  
  
"Sir", she began in a thick German accent, "I need passage back East for me and my two boys..."  
  
"That will be 130 dollars", West said.  
  
"That's outrageous! That's over a year's salary!" The white woman began.  
  
West interupted, "Take it or leave it woman, this IS the only way back."  
  
He wasn't able to finish the word "back" when that saucy tart Fannie Mae Belle flounced up to his side.  
  
"She's got more feathers than a peacock!" West thought, "She still looks like a saloon girl, no matter how hard she tries not to..."  
  
"Well, hi there handsome", Fannie gushed. West knew Fannie Mae too well to fall for her womanly wiles.  
  
"Heard that you'll be setting out East today! I've got a rich Uncle to go see back East. He's near death, and you know how I've been oh, so worried about him!", she said with an air of greed and manipulation.  
  
West shrugged her off. He didn't like her company, at least not out of bed. But, he knew she had good money. This other woman with children however...  
  
  
  
Ingrid wondered to herself if she could trust this Indian named 'West'.  
  
"I don't mean to interupt", Ingrid said, "but I do need passage for me and my two boys,.....One hundred dollars is all the money I have. We must go back to Connecticut to live with my father-in-law. Please,  
  
we have no where else to go, my husband was kil-, is dead, please, can you show some mercy...."  
  
She was practically begging West to take her money.  
  
  
  
West stared ahead as he grabbed this woman's money. He didn't want to hear her prattle on and on and make a commotion, that was bad for business. He finally nodded and watched as this woman, unassisted, helped her two young sons into the stage coach.  
  
Ingrid found the wooden seats hard and uncomfortable, but the coach would give them shelter and it beat walking. "Thank you Lord" she said as she and her boys said a prayer for safe travel.  
  
They were waitng to depart when Bruce said, "Mom, I'm tired!"  
  
"Yeah, Mom, I'm hungry!", little David chimed in.  
  
Ingrid gathered her two sons Bruce and David to her side as Fannie entered the coach.  
  
  
  
Fannie screamed "Brats! Agh! I am not riding all the way to Connecticut with these two brats!"  
  
"My children are not brats, how dare you!" Ingrid retorted.  
  
Fannie Mae gave her best 'air of superiority' act and said "Well, I have never..."  
  
"And you never should!" replied Ingrid.  
  
"Listen to your voice," Fannie Mae scoffed, "Why you're not even an American!"  
  
Before Ingrid could react to Fannie's stinging comments, West stuck his head inside the coach and countered, "Neither are you Fannie! My people have been here before either of you!"  
  
The white man could be so stupid, he thought to himself.  
  
And with that they packed it up and headed out East....  
  
******  
  
Lee said, "Amanda, that sounds ...interesting...Ummm...", in a softer voice he continued,"What are you doing so far away?" He reached his arms through the bars, "How about coming over here and I'll give a repeat performance of last night's famous 'magic fingers'?"  
  
"That back rub was sooooo great last night!" Amanda smiled. "Shame on you for tempting me like this. I think now I DO have the strength to break these bars of steel!", Amanda half-heartedly laughed as she leaned as best she could through the bars and gave Lee a smooch...  
  
"Hey Sweetheart" Lee said as he pulled Amanda toward him. He was unable to reach her for a good passionate kiss. "I'm sorry about before," Lee said huskily in Amanda's ear.  
  
"You are?" Amanda said softly, she was amazed!  
  
"Well, you know I've been a bachelor a long time but I just want to tell you, I'm ...sorry and thanks for helping me navigate. I'm sorry I got upset."  
  
"Ah," Amanda replied as she tightened her arms around Lee and the bars and gave him a squeeze, "I knew we'd eventually make up!"  
  
"Oh no, that's still coming! Once we get out of here!" Lee teased. How he longed to overtake his wife with real kisses!  
  
"Hmmmmmmm" Amanda replied. Yep, she thought, making up is going to be fun, I just hope we get a chance to do it.  
  
As they sat there, Lee said, "Hey, it's going to be dark soon, how about reading more of that book....."  
  
Amanda continued, "We have stopped now to give the horses a chance to rest..."  
  
*******  
  
West loosened up the reigns and allowed the horses a cool drink. They had been traveling alone for several hours now and were resting when Fannie yelled out, "Yoohoo! Look over here!"  
  
Fannie was calling some man in the distance over. Fannie definitely had an affinity for men,  
  
West marveled, who had she not been with in this territory?  
  
As the distant man approached, Ingrid could see a darker man traveling close behind him. As they came closer, she noticed the shackles and chains around the darker man. He had no shoes on his feet and his shirt was spliced , where a whip had peirced his shirt and skin....  
  
"Brother!" she cried out. Ingrid saw all men as created equal by God. All men were her brothers.  
  
The approaching white man spewed out "German! Runaway slave lover!"  
  
Ingrid knew it was useless to argue with this ignorant man. He couldn't receive correction. Not from a woman. Worse yet, one who had a German accent.  
  
West spoke out, "What do you want, Creech?!"  
  
  
  
tbc 


	2. Day by Day

Act 2 Day by Day  
  
Josiah Creech just stood there. "What do I want?" he thought, "Well Fannie Mae and that other woman for starters..." Instead, he gazed down at the whiskey bottle West held and gruffly said, "How 'bout some whiskey?"  
  
West shook his head in disgust. "Josiah, you still owe me from last time! Way I see things," he continued while nodding to the run-away slave, "You're doing quite well!"  
  
The slave stood defiantely before these two men. His jaw was set and his cold, lifeless eyes were fixed straight ahead. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw one white woman approach. Samuel's body automatically tightened as she came near but he refused to look at her. He was so used to bracing himself for cruel punishment. He expected the worst, but, this woman caught him by surprise.  
  
Ingrid stood by the slave's side and silently placed a hard peice of bread into his chained hand.  
  
Her little son David ran up behind her and said, "But Mommy, that's the only bread you have!"  
  
Samuel slowly turned his eyes toward this woman. She had fair, compassionate eyes. He mouthed "Thank you" as Ingrid squeezed his hand and quickly made her way back to the stagecoach.  
  
"Get moovin'!" Creech screamed as he pulled on Samuel's chains. "I should just kill you right now for even lookin' at that white woman, 'cept your master wants you back!"  
  
West knew how enraged Creech could get. He had seen him, in a drunken stupor, blow a man's head off for nothing more than smiling at him. West shuddered at the thought of what that poor slave would face if Creech ever got a hold of some booze.  
  
Ingrid couldn't watch any longer as the slave hunter and his prey walked away. Her heart was breaking. She knew that this colored man would have to have been kidnapped again and was now being held against his will. Apparently for a hefty ransom. If only she had had more money she thought, "I would buy 'free papers' for all those in bondage."  
  
  
  
***  
  
"Amanda," Lee said tenderly, "I can't imagine what that would have been like."  
  
Amanda snuggled closer to the bars between herself and Lee in an effort to cuddle. "We only have a little more daylight. Do you mind if I read a little more? I'd really like to know what happens.."  
  
Lee looked at his wife and marveled at her tender demeanor. Her empathy with Samuel and Ingrid was written all over her lovely face. He gently lifted his hand and caressed Amanda's cheek. "If you only knew what I'd really like to be doing right now..."  
  
"I know....I know," Amanda replied softly. Although she knew exactly what Lee meant, there was one slight hindrance there..."Kinda funny though, that we're in this position on our honeymoon, isn't it Lee?"  
  
Lee replied "I'm not laughing! And I guess it's all my fault..."  
  
"Oh no, let's not go there", Amanda softly chided. "Let's read some more, I'd really like to.."  
  
Lee begrudgingly said, "Okay...."  
  
  
  
****  
  
  
  
West looked over the young flames of the campfire and marveled at Ingrid. She was quite brave for a newly widowed woman. He had never before seen anyone so boldly help a slave. Yes, he thought she was quite unlike any other woman he had ever met, even his wife.  
  
Ingrid could feel the heat of West's stare but chose to focus her attention on her two little boys. They were exhausted after traveling across rough country for more than a full day. Ingrid embraced little Bruce and David to her bossom and softly hummed a German lullabye.  
  
  
  
Fannie smirked in disgust. "Oh, please shut up! No one wants to hear German songs around here! I know a catchy little tune from the saloon..."  
  
A not so distant shriek peirced the darkness. West stood up abruptly and turned to face that noise. He knew Creech must have gotten some whiskey. He turned back and yelled, "What did you do!" at Fannie.  
  
"Oh, c'mon now West, Creech and I were just having a little fun...he wanted a little whiskey and I needed a little bit of money..."Fannie replied, unmoved by what she had done. "That slave deserves whatever comes his way anyway! He broke the law by running away ...."  
  
Ingrid did not find Fannie's ignorance amusing. As the sounds of a whip cracking echoed nearby, Ingrid's humming became louder. She could still hear Creech in the meadow below, howling in amusement at Samuel's torture.  
  
  
  
Whack!  
  
  
  
Thwack!  
  
  
  
Ingrid couldn't take it anymore, the confused look of her son's faces, the endless cracking of the whip, she trembled and shook as she held her boys closer and started to sing, "Day by day....."  
  
Thwack!  
  
  
  
"each passing moment..."  
  
  
  
Crack!  
  
  
  
"Strength I find for trials here....."  
  
  
  
Whack!  
  
  
  
"trusting in my Father's wisdom..."  
  
  
  
West sat there awed by Ingrid, a woman of great virtue and calm. He knew that she was singing to prevent her sons from hearing the sounds of the whip. That was one noise that would be branded on his mind forever.  
  
No more cries or screams rang out from the man receiving those blows. In fact, West didn't hear one more shriek, other than the first one. That first blow must have surely caught Samuel off guard.  
  
  
  
West admired Samuel and knew he would make a great warrior. One who was able to endure great pain yet persevere. His eyes began to water so he tipped his hat over his eyes and, in an attempt to appear to be sleeping, leaned against the wagon wheel. Nothing could have prepared him for what happened next.  
  
Everyone around the campfire became still. They could now hear, amid Creech's obscenities, that brave man singing in the distance the rest of Ingrid's song...  
  
"I've no cause to worry or fear.....He whose heart is kind beyond all measure..."  
  
Thwack!  
  
  
  
"gives unto each what He deems best....."  
  
  
  
Crack!  
  
  
  
"Lovingly, it's pain and pleasure..."  
  
Fannie shot up from her seat and bluntly stated "I'm going to bed!" then wasted no time in making her exit.  
  
  
  
Whack!  
  
  
  
"Mingling toil with peace and rest..."  
  
Ingrid couldn't sing anymore. Weeping, she hastily swept her children up in her arms and took off for the stagecoach.  
  
West followed her.  
  
As he watched her settle her boys into bed, he came up and stood close behind her.  
  
Ingrid could feel the heat of West's body but did not dare turn around. This was the last thing she needed! A drunk Indian looking for love. She fought every urge to turn around and slap him!  
  
"Woman!" he said as he grabbed her arms and spun her around. He looked down in her fiery hazel eyes.  
  
"Mr. West! You forget yourself! You are married and have sons also!" she uttered as she struggled to free herself from his grip.  
  
Why did he have to be so attractive?, she thought. His towering figure and strength overwhelmed her. It was all she could do to not lose herself in those deep brown eyes. "Lord", she prayed, "I wish I didn't feel this way! Protect me and deliver me from temptation!"  
  
For reasons he couldn't understand, West immediately released Ingrid from his grip and mumbled "I'm sorry." In a daze, he returned to the campfire and began devising a plan to set Samuel free.  
  
  
  
*****  
  
  
  
Ruff, rararauff, rolf! Ruff!  
  
Blue, an old Hopi Indian, sat on a small wooden chair in his hogan. He didn't take his eyes off the computer screen to look down at his dog but simply said "Snow!"  
  
Snow panted his way over and obediently sat by his master's side.  
  
Still without looking at his Alaskan Husky, Blue asked "Company?"  
  
Ruff, ruff!  
  
"Mmm. They will keep till tomorrow", Blue said as his gnarled hands turned off his computer and he shuffled off to bed.  
  
******  
  
Lee sat there in the dark, affectionately stroking Amanda's hair through the bars that seperated them.  
  
What could he say? With a tender kiss to her forehead, Lee closed his eyes and did his best to hold Amanda as she cried.  
  
She was beginning to understand that she was reading about one of her very own...  
  
  
  
tbc 


	3. Dawn of a New Day

Act 3: Dawn of a New Day  
  
  
  
Heha heha heha heha heha heha heha  
  
  
  
  
  
Lee squinted one eye open. Was he dreaming? He swore he heard someone ...panting?  
  
Lee slowly squinted both eyes open. He could see Amanda's face. She didn't appear to be panting, so, where was it coming from?  
  
Lee thought "Okay! Now I know I'm a little disoriented!" He swore he just saw a flash of white streak past his peripheral vision. Lee closed his eyes and blinked them open again. He saw nothing and heard nothing but the sound of Amanda breathing. Lee shook his head and decided that he must have imagined the whole panting thing.  
  
  
  
"Lee?" Amanda said sleepily.  
  
"Yes, Amanda" Lee said as he reached through the steel bars to brush Amanda's soft hair off of her furrowed brow.  
  
"I have something kind of unbelievable to tell you," Amanda said as she arched her back to stretch and took a deep breath before she continued, "You know that book we've been reading?"  
  
"Yes..." Lee said wondering where Amanda was going with this.  
  
"Well, I think my great-great-great-grandfather wrote it." Amanda said with a sigh of relief.  
  
Lee carefully asked, "Is that what made you cry last night?" He was almost afraid to ask. He just knew there were some things about his wife he didn't yet understand.  
  
"Well, yes, in a way. You see, when I was little, my dad used to tell me stories about his great-great grandfather Jackson West. I always thought they were just that, you know, only stories. But now I realize ...my dad was telling me the truth." Amanda attempted, from her estranged position, to lean her head on Lee's shoulder.  
  
"Oh, what stories?" Lee wasn't sure what to say at this point.  
  
"There were several, but one story really struck me the most," Amanda began, "My father told me that Grandpa Jackson had helped slaves escape along the underground railroad and was eventually caught and tortured and killed for his efforts. I think it was during the Civil War when he was killed."  
  
"So, this," Amanda continued as she held the book, "means that this very book was most likely written by Grandpa Jackson's own hand, years before he was killed. It's just so sad and amazing. We're reading my great-great- great grandfather's first hand account of his initial effort to free a slave." Amanda turned to look in her husband's tender eyes, "Then I got to thinking about my dad and, well, I just started to cry...it seems too incredible..."  
  
"Very incredible" said a voice Lee and Amanda did not recognize. Blue stood outside their cells and smiled.  
  
Lee and Amanda looked at each other in surprise.  
  
heha heha heha heha  
  
Snow came up and stood by Blue's side. Lee looked at the white-faced husky and uttered "Oh man!"  
  
Now he knew the source of the panting and the white streak.  
  
"That will be 75 dollars each for non-smoking cells..." Blue said straight- faced as he walked away.  
  
Lee jumped up and said "Hey!" Was this old man joking?  
  
Lee could hear the old Indian shuffle away and stop at the entrance of the jail. Then Lee heard the old man chuckle.  
  
"Good joke, eh?" Blue said as he shuffled back and looked at Lee from around the corner.  
  
Lee was really beginning to think he woke up on the wrong side of this story, er, the floor.  
  
"Who are you?" inquired Amanda.  
  
"Blue" said Blue.  
  
"Oh we've got an expressive one here!" thought Lee as he said, "Look man, you can tell me who you are after you get us out of here!"  
  
Blue looked at Lee and said, "Don't have the key?"  
  
"Look man, I'm not in the mood...!"  
  
"Lee," Amanda said softly as she stood parallel to her husband, "Excuse me sir, my husband and I really need to find the person who put us in here. Can you help us get out?"  
  
"Look up" Blue said.  
  
Lee was really getting fed up with this old-timers nonsense, "C'mon man help us out!"  
  
"Look up," Blue continued, "You have to climb over, I don't have the key."  
  
Lee was incredulous. As he looked up, he noticed that, the whole time, they could have climbed up and escaped over the cell wall. There was a two foot gap between the walls and ceiling. Lee's face turned all shades of Heinz 57.  
  
Amanda said "Oh my!" and smiled at Lee. If it wasn't so ridiculous, it would be funny.  
  
Lee hoofed it over the side and jumped down next to Amanda. After a quick embrace and kiss, Lee helped Amanda climb up and out, over the cell wall.  
  
"Oh! The book..." Amanda said.  
  
Lee nodded and then jumped down, book in hand, next to his wife and told Blue, "There's a man who locked us up, he had red curly hair, thick glasses..."  
  
Blue continued, "Bad breath, mean streak, yeah...Dr. Frye."  
  
"You know who he is?" Lee demanded.  
  
"Yeah." Blue said as he walked away.  
  
"Don't you want to catch Dr. Frye?" Amanda asked, "He's stolen a truckload of artifacts...."  
  
Blue continued to walk away.  
  
Lee took Amanda's hand as they headed outside and followed after Blue.  
  
Blue finally stopped and stood next to his 4-wheel drive Bronco.  
  
"Matlock." Blue said as he entered the driver's side.  
  
Amanda and Lee looked at each other, puzzled.  
  
Blue beeped his horn at them and yelled "Get in!"  
  
"Oh boy!" they said in unison as they climbed in and took off at warp speed.  
  
****  
  
"Don't you have sh-sh-shock absorbers?!" Lee yelled at Blue over the blaring country music.  
  
Blue smiled in return as they four wheeled it across the Hopi Reservation, toward Flagstaff and Northern Arizona University.  
  
****  
  
Dr. Frye, tenured professor of anthropology at NAU, looked smuggly at the 25 students before him. They groveled at his every word. "You maggots wouldn't know a Sikyatki Polychrome pot if it bit you on your..."  
  
"Assiniboine" Blue said as he stood near the back of the lab and held a peice of pottery made by that northern plain tribe.  
  
Frye sneered as he looked up at this old senile Indian man. He had always bribed the old kodger with free AOL internet CD's in exchange for access to restricted parts of the Reservation.  
  
Frye walked up and hissed in Blue's ear, "You'll never catch me!"  
  
Blue walked through the doorway and said, "I just did" as he stared at Dr. Frye and pulled out the tape recorder from his pocket.  
  
Frye looked at his students and said, "Okay everybody, let's just ignore the doddering old man." He then pushed Blue out of the door and ran down the hall, right into the path of Lee and Amanda and a very irritable state trooper.  
  
"I didn't even have my doughnuts yet, Carrot-top!" yelled the Statie as he hauled the Prof away. Those darn 8 a.m classes!  
  
****  
  
"Lee." Amanda said with a smile and little else as she made her grand entrance from the bathroom. She wore an alluring white lace chemise they had found at a boutique in Tlaquepaque, a retail establishment there in Sedona, near their hotel. "I had alot of fun sight-seeing with you today...how would you like to see a sight of your own now?!" she teased in her best Mae West.  
  
  
  
"What?" Lee said without looking at Amanda. His eyes were glued to the t.v. screen. After calling the front desk for Pay-per-View, Lee sat in anticipation for "Debbi's Double D: Doing Dallas and Denver" to begin....  
  
"What are you watching!?" Amanda exclaimed as she gawked at the t.v. screen. Amanda scowled at Lee and stormed past him. She noisily flung open the sliding door to their balcony and stepped out, she didn't care who was watching! Amanda stood in the frigid air, shaking...from...anger.  
  
Frigid. That's just how she felt right at this moment. "Here we are, finally together on our honeymoon and Lee's got the audacity to order that trash!" she thought, "I can't compete with that! What is he thinking!?"  
  
Still angry, Amanda stomped back through their room, gave Lee her best 'you jerk!' look, threw on her coat, and snatched that blue diary from the nightstand.  
  
Lee sat, stunned, as Amanda slammed their door.  
  
"Whoops" he mumbled. This was definitely NOT how Lee envisioned their evening together. Reluctantly, he got up, turned off the t.v. and followed after his distressed bride.  
  
tbc 


	4. A Fresh Start

Act 4: A Fresh Start  
  
  
  
"No shoes, no service..ma'am!"  
  
  
  
Pretentious diners at the hotel eatery looked approvingly as the snooty hostess humiliated Amanda.  
  
  
  
"Oh, uh..." Amanda stood red-faced, in front of the 'Please Wait to be Seated' sign. "I just wanted to grab a cup of coffee...." she said as she watched the narcissist walk away.  
  
  
  
"Can I help you, ma'am? Lover's spat, huh?"  
  
  
  
Amanda turned around to face the kinder countenance of ElioraJoy.  
  
  
  
"Oh, thank you," Amanda replied as she glanced down at her own bare feet.  
  
  
  
"Don't worry about it...you'd be surprised how many paramours trapse through here 'sans shoes," EJ quipped.  
  
  
  
Amanda smiled and said "Interesting name" as she read ElioraJoy's name tag.  
  
  
  
"Yeah! Hey, let me show you a cozy booth back here. It's got really great light for reading..." EJ said while looking at Amanda's book. "Doing research?"  
  
  
  
"Oh, just brushing up on family history..." Amanda uttered as she followed EJ to a secluded booth near the kitchen.  
  
  
  
ElioraJoy couldn't resist, "By the way, if I see a guilty looking male come in, I'll let ya know..."  
  
  
  
Amanda replied lightly, "Well, he'll be 6'2" with hazel eyes and he better have a penitent expression on his face..."  
  
  
  
"I'll be on the lookout," EJ responded. "Just want to warn you though, if he's good looking, I'll keep him to myself!"  
  
  
  
Amanda shook her head and laughed.  
  
  
  
EJ continued, "Let me go get ya a nice hot cup of coffee! Cream and sugar?"  
  
  
  
Amanda nodded as she settled comfortably enough into her booth. This wasn't exactly what she had planned. On this evening, she had very much wanted to spend time in the arms of her new husband. She thanked EJ for the steaming cup of coffee and started to read.  
  
  
  
Lee ached as he watched Amanda from a distance. "Man, she's sexy!", he thought to himself as he watched Amanda tuck her bare feet up on the seat and underneath her coat.  
  
  
  
Amanda tensed up as she began reading the next journal entry, she could feel someone watching her. She relaxed as soon as she heard Lee's repentant voice softly say, "Hey toots, is this seat taken?" Amanda didn't look up but smiled and scooted over to allow Lee room to sit down next to her.  
  
  
  
Lee scooted in and leaned over and whispered "I'm sorry" as his lips bussed Amanda's hair. He then took her hand and emphatically kissed it. "Amanda, ...I love you...it's just that.... I've been..."  
  
"A bachelor for a long time, yes I know Lee...Please understand, I ...can't.... and... don't want to.....compete with 'Debbi'!" Amanda said as she looked up into Lee's apologetic eyes.  
  
"Fair enough Amanda," Lee said as he thought 'Why do I get the distinct impression that I'm going to be apologizing alot from now on?'  
  
Lee grabbed Amanda's coat collar and pulled her face toward him. "Let's go make up...." he murmured into her ear.  
  
"Is that a threat, Mr. Stetson?" Amanda replied as she smiled.  
  
"Definitely" Lee said as he took Amanda's hand and led her back to their room.  
  
  
  
****  
  
  
  
Amanda snuggled closer to Lee under the covers and squeezed her arms around her husband and...grinned. She was satisfied. Very satisfied.  
  
"Hey, Amanda," Lee said as he pulled his beautiful wife closer to his side. He had been ravished with his wife's love and looked forward now to their 'pillow talk'. "What ever happened to Samuel? Was he set free?"  
  
Amanda propped herself up on both elbows. Lee smiled approvingly at her lovely figure as she looked tenderly into his eyes and said, "I don't know. Grab the book for me and I'll read a little bit till we find out."  
  
"I would love that Mrs. Stetson", Lee said as he reached over to grab the diary from the bedstand. He was so relieved that they had finally made up!  
  
Amanda rested her head on Lee's shoulder and started to read, "Today is October 6th, the year of our Lord 1856. This is a day I'll never forget..."  
  
*****  
  
  
  
West heard little Bruce ask his mother Ingrid "Mommy, why isn't that slave free yet? We prayed alot last night and he's still not here yet."  
  
Ingrid smiled at her concerned little one and said, "God answers prayer in His time."  
  
Suddenly, a woman's voice was heard in the distance.  
  
"Let go of me you fool!"  
  
West rushed down the hill, it was Fannie!  
  
As he reached the bottom, he saw Creech wrestling Fannie to the ground. Samuel was still incapacitated and laying in a pool of blood by Fannie's feet.  
  
"Let go of her!" West screamed.  
  
Creech was easy enough for West to fend off. The liquor had zapped Creech's strength.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" West yelled as Creech passed out. West shook him. It was no use. Creech was out cold.  
  
"C'mon Fannie! You make me sick! What did you need? More money!?" West yelled as he dragged Fannie back up the hill and threw her into the stagecoach.  
  
"We're heading out! Now! Pack it up!" West commanded Ingrid and her boys.  
  
Ingrid was shocked! She had never seen West so urgent and...what was it? Concerned?  
  
The bruised and injured Fannie sat in the coach, tears stinging her eyes. Ingrid settled her boys in the coach, across from Fannie.  
  
"You were trying to rescue Samuel, weren't you?" Ingrid asked Fannie.  
  
"You'll never be able to prove it! You know what they do to anyone who helps set a slave free! I don't even know what you're talking about!" Fannie said as tears streamed down her face.  
  
Ingrid was amazed. Here she and West had thought that Fannie was a simple harlot looking for money. Ingrid admonished herself and repented to God. There was more virtue to Fannie Mae Belle than Ingrid would ever know.  
  
  
  
West ran back down the slope. Assured that Creech was breathing but just passed out cold, West heaved Samuel up on his back and ran up the hill.  
  
He dumped Samuel by Ingrid and Fannie's feet and yelled "Hide him!" as he prepared the horses for their rapid departure. There was no need to explain, everyone understood their course had been altered.  
  
  
  
Tag next! 


	5. Tag

Tag!  
  
  
  
Lee turned to Amanda and smiled. "So, Mrs. Stetson, are we going in the right direction?"  
  
  
  
"Yes, sir! All clear sir!" Amanda playfully replied. "We are now officially headed south, straight for Green Valley, sir!"  
  
Lee smiled and said, "Hey, Amanda, we both fell asleep before you could finish Grandpa Jackson's final entry. Did they make it to Connecticut?"  
  
"Let's see now, here's the rest of the last entry..."We arrived in Washington, DC today in order to obtain Samuel's free papers. Fannie has met a kind officer while helping Samuel complete the documentation. His name is Desmond and I believe she plans to stay on. Samuel was able to find work as a foreman for Obadiah Melrose ....they seem to get along quite well, in fact Obadiah treats Samuel like a son."  
  
Lee sat in silence as Amanda completed the entry. Desmond? Melrose? He thought "Nah, it couldn't be..."  
  
After a bit of silence, Lee asked "Was that all? We never had a chance to hear about Ingrid and her boys..."  
  
Amanda picked up the journal again and turned to the last page. "No, my great-great, you know, great grandfather didn't mention....hey what's this?"  
  
A creased paper dropped from the folds of the journal. Amanda bent down to pick it up. "Oh, look! It's a letter and picture!"  
  
Amanda looked at the picture and smiled. "They're quite some couple! So serious! I always thought it was funny that no one smiled in those old pictures!"  
  
Lee took the picture and laughed. West had definitely been a tall man. He recognized the family resemblance immediately. Amanda had West's stature and beautiful big brown eyes. In the photograph, West stood next to his wife but there was another woman in the picture. That woman seemed familiar too. She had a fair complexion and stunning eyes. "What does the letter say Amanda?"  
  
"Hmm, hmm," Amanda cleared her throat, "Dear Ingrid, My wife and I are so pleased that you have accepted our son as your ward that he may go to a proper school in the East. Bruce and David will be fine companions. My wife and I pray to your God that our descendants will bless your descendants with purity and kindness as you have blessed us. Yours Cordially, Jackson West"  
  
"Then look here Lee," Amanda continued, "Here in the margin, it looks like someone wrote "and may my descendants bless your descendants with bravery and compassion as you have blessed me. In His Service, Ingrid"  
  
"I wonder if their prayers had ever been answered..." Amanda wondered out loud.  
  
"Uh, I know for a fact they were." Lee replied.  
  
"How can you be sure they were?" Amanda teased until she turned and saw Lee's ashen face.  
  
"Lee, what is it?"  
  
"Look at the back of the photograph...."  
  
Amanda reached for the photograph and read, "Well it says 'Mr. and Mrs. Jackson West and Ingrid....." Amanda's throat tightened.  
  
"Yeah" Lee said, "Read it..."  
  
  
  
"It says Ingrid ....Stetson!"  
  
  
  
Lee and Amanda were quiet the rest of the way to Green Valley as they marvelled at the God who answers prayer in His time.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
End episode two 


End file.
